SPOILER WARNING for Maestro: War and Pax #5!
Iron Man has built some incredible suits of armor, but even his brilliant designs don’t stand up to the work of Doctor Doom. Victor von Doom has always had a massive ego, often claiming to be superior to his rival Reed Richards. While Mr. Fantastic has managed to foil Doom’s plans time and again, the villain still has plenty of reasons to back up his self-confidence. In fact, Doom’s latest showdown with the Hulk proves just how formidable an opponent he can be.
Maestro: War and Pax takes place in an apocalyptic future, where an embittered Bruce Banner is one of the last surviving superhumans. Instead of working to rebuild what’s been lost, Hulk decides that he will rule what’s left of humanity. Now going by Maestro, the Green Goliath sets out to smash anyone that gets in his way, even killing former friends like Hercules and the Pantheon. Still, his work isn’t done, as Doctor Doom still looms as a threat to his regime.
In Peter David, Javier Pina, Jesus Aburtov, and Travis Lanham’s Maestro: War and Pax #5, Maestro returns to his home in the civilization of Dystopia to find that Doctor Doom is already waiting for him on his own throne. Approaching the infamous villain, Hulk shakes his hand before joining him for a meal. As the two sit and eat, it’s revealed that they’d been working together to defeat A.I.M. and the Pantheon, but when Doom mentions uniting together to take over the world, the mood in the room changes.
Maestro admits to Doom that he doesn’t plan on sharing any power and tells the Latverian that he poisoned his wine. Having taken an antitoxin, Doom strikes Banner with a powerful energy blast and a brutal battle begins. At first, Doctor Doom seems to have the upper hand, repeatedly sending Maestro flying through the air across the city. Only when Maestro crashes into an old Alchemax building do things begin to shift in his favor. Utilizing his surroundings and taking advantage of Doom’s tendency to gloat, Maestro manages to strip his enemy of his armor using large electromagnets, before punching him through a wall. Just as it seems that Maestro is about to finish off his opponent, however, Doom manages to crawl over to his mask and activate a translocator, teleporting him to safety and saving his life.
Maestro is basically the Hulk on steroids, having proven even stronger than his younger self, yet Doom still manages to slap him around pretty easily. Had the former Avenger not been able to remove Doom’s armor, he honestly may not have stood any chance of winning. This is a pretty huge accomplishment for the villain, especially considering how Tony Stark’s armor has fared against the Hulk in the past.
Iron Man has implemented tons of amazing features into his suits, but even his Hulkbuster armor, which is literally made for fighting the Jade Giant, isn’t capable of slapping the Hulk around like Doom does in this issue. Additionally, Doom’s ability to put working teleportation tech into just his face plate is a feat that Tony Stark certainly hasn’t accomplished. While Iron Man may be better known for his armor making skills, it’s clear that Doctor Doom is just as, if not more proficient in the field. Maestro: War and Pax #5 from Marvel Comics is available now.